Another larger-than-normal jackpot is bubbling over in Florida, and the good news about this one is that the winning ticket has to be sold in Florida.

The Florida Lotto jackpot is at $43 million for Wednesday night’s drawing. That’s easily the largest is has been all year and is the highest since the $51 million in December 2011. No one has correctly picked the six numbers needed since April 20.

The state began offering Florida Lotto in 1988, shortly after voters approved a statewide lottery. Two larger lotteries – now played in 43 states – later became available to Floridians: Powerball in 2009 and MegaMillions earlier this year. Because of those games, some lottery players have wandered away from Florida Lotto, and with a slower pace of ticket sales, the chances of breaking the state’s Lotto record jackpot of $106.5 million in 1990 is slim, lottery officials note.

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About the blog & author

Maybe you've made the right play, maybe you haven't. Your heart speeds up, your stomach rumbles.
That's why it's called gambling. Action is a sure bet, offering a view of the numbers, the psychology and the flavor of gambling here in South Florida, through our lens.

Nick Sortal began playing 3-card "gut" and "Indian poker" on high school band trips, moved on to "night baseball" and "pass the trash" during a Dr Pepper-infused midnight game in the 1980s at the St. Louis Globe-Democrat, and now play in a regular neighborhood hold 'em game in Plantation. He's been writing about gambling life in South Florida casinos since 2007, which means sitting around watching poker on TV counts as research.